Consumption, total apparent digestibility of nutrients and performance of Guzerá steers fed a mixed silage from sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and pineapple plants (Ananas comosus)

• Grant number: 05/04488-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2006
• End date: February 28, 2007
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal Investigator: Antonio Fernando Bergamaschine
• Grantee: André Luís Gitti Barbosa
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia (FEIS). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Ilha Solteira. Ilha Solteira , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The use of agricultural by-products in the animal feeding integrates the agricultural and cattle activities giving larger maintaince for both. The objectives of this work will be evaluating the chemical composition, the consumption and the apparent digestibility of nutrients of mixed pineapple plants and sorghum silages, as well as the acting (gain of weight and alimentary conversion) of bovine. 20 bullocks of the breed Guzerá will be used with body weight between 220 and 250 kg and age between 12 and 15 months. The treatments will be constituted by silage: T1 - 100% of sorghum; T2 - 67% of sorghum + 33% of pineapple plant (SHOVEL); T3 - 33% of sorghum + 67% SHOVEL; T4 - 100% SHOVEL. Before I begin him/it of the experiment there will be an adaptation period to the confinement of 15 days, when the animals will receive silage of comfortable sorghum and 1 kg/animal/day of cottonseed meal with 45% of CP, besides mineral mixture. After this period the animals were distributed to the treatments forming blocks. The experiment will last 70 days, being an adaptation period to the diets (silage) of seven days and three experimental periods of 21 days each. The animals will be weighted in the beginning of the experiment and later every 21 days. The animals will be fed twice a day (8:00 and 16:00 h) allowing remain of 10%, besides the silage they will receive 1 kg/animal/day of cottonseed meal. Three times a week samples of the silage will be taken, while the surpluses will be weighted and sampling from Monday to Fridays. In the silage will be taken the pH, the N-NH3 and the chemical composition. For the nutrients digestibility determinations, the fecal production will be measured using indigestibly detergent acid fiber (IADF). The feces will be collected directly twice in the floor of the stalls a day (6:30 and 16:00 h) during five days between the 42nd and 46th day of the experiment. The obtained data will be appraised through variance analysis and of regression, and the averages will be compared by the test Tukey at the level of 5% of significance.